Prejudice
by Nerdene Hyrde
Summary: Various members of the Nerdene Hyrde run face-first into the prejudice that still taints the Autobot ranks. Chapter Four, Sunblazer and Caz
1. Chapter 1

Remember that bronze femme from Firsts? Well, she's back... and this time she's playing with Loki! Loki played herself, and Shadow played Goldstrike. And Wish. And Tiyem. ...Shadow is a busy mech...

Transformers is not ours, though the characters in this fic might be...

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Primus, how she hated the large Autobot officers meetings! They were stuffy, cramped, boring, slow, AND Loki couldn't get away with her normal speech! Prowl would always tell her she needed better mannerisms when she spoke up… Turning, the spinosaurus dinobot headed towards her office, maybe one of the twins' pranking devices she had hidden away could help… Intent on her thoughts, she didn't notice anything around her until she ran into a smaller, bronze femme. "Oops, sorry dude, A' didn' see ya'…"

Goldstrike offered the other femme a glare. "Do I LOOK like a 'dude' to you?" she sniffed haughtily. Oh, it was a dinobot... "Well, I suppose I might to you..." She tried to step around the dino, annoyed at how large she was. She was taking up practically the entire hallway! Erg, why couldn't dinobots just stay out of the way of normal people?

"Wha's that 'posed ta' mean?" Loki growled, whirling on the femme before regaining her composure and grinning. "Aye, ya' do look like a dude…" She snorted, "Or betta' yet, a' bitch." Something nagged at the dino's processor, this femme seemed familiar… "Watcha name BITCH?" she asked coolly, enjoying the way the human curse word confused the femme.

Bitch...? What the slag was that...? Wait, wasn't it... With a nasty laugh, Goldstrike commented, "Oh, look, the dino thinks she's so smart, using a human word! What's the matter, one of your friends named Glitch, you don't want to insult them? You already have a Slag, after all..." She sneered, not noticing the dinobot's growing anger. "I'm Goldstrike, but that's probably too complicated for you."

Snarling Loki realized just who the femme was and felt her claws twitch, begging to be let free to tear into the smaller femme. This was the femme that put a blemish on Shadow's report! And this was the femme that wasn't getting away this time! "Wow ya' should really get ya' head outa ya' aft 'fore ya' go an' hurt ya'self," she snapped, forcing the urge to transform and let loose aside. "Ya' so stupid ya' don' know that Slag an' Glitch ENJOY havin' their names used ta' cus' fucka's like ya' out."

"Oh, how cute," Goldstrike said, voice flat. "Trying to defend your friends... if SLAG and GLITCH enjoy having their names used, then why aren't you using them? Stupid dinos..." She tried to push past again, sure that the dino wouldn't dare do anything here. The dinos were dumb, but they DID respect authority, and there were enough people around that Goldstrike felt perfectly safe.

Growling openly, Loki grabbed the smaller femme and shoved her up against the wall. "'Cause YA' not WORTH it! Guess what ya' lil' asshole, ya' not WORTH usin' mah fellow dinos' names on ya'! Ya ' not even worth human curses eitha', but oh well." She squeezed the shoulder in her hand, denting the metal slightly. "Watcha gotta say 'bout that? Hmmmm? Ya' stupid bitch, ya' messed with meh at the WRONG ass time, A' jus' came from a meetin' an' ain't happy."

THAT was not supposed to have happened. "Let go of me, dino!" Goldstrike yelled, high and grating. "You can't do this! Do you know what happened to the last person stupid enough to assault me? It'll be even WORSE for YOU, you stupid, processor glitched, CPU-missing, SLAG HEAP!" The bronze femme clutched at the hand that was slowly crushing her shoulder.

Raising a optic ridge the dinobot laughed harshly, this femme really thought that she was so high and mighty? "O' course A' know, he's mah friend lil' girly. An' theres notin' ya' can do ta' meh, ya' not even as high as his rank, Shadow's above ya' bitch, he's a strong soldier and a wonda'ful danca'." She leaned in closer, voice dropping slightly. "Do ya' even know who A' am? Or are ya' really that stupid?" Primus was that weird! Loki hated being mean, but just thinking about what she had said to Shadowsinger and about her fellow dinobots was bringing out the cruel side of her… a side not many saw unless in battle.

"Oh, sure, he's a good dancer, that's about all he's good for," Goldstrike agreed, sneering to cover the fear that was beginning to eat at her. "Figures he'd be friends with a dinobot, classless scrap has to band together, after all." It was like she simply had not heard the other femme's full statements, or perhaps she simply refused to process them. "It doesn't make a bit of difference who you are or think you are."

Lashing out, the dinobot punched the smaller femme in the face, anger building. "He is worth more than ya' EVER will be!" she spat, hand crunching into bronze armor even more. "An' I don' think, A' KNOW I'm the second-in-command o' the Nerdene Hyrde, Xobit Prime is ma' commander, ma' friend, an' Shadow's a great asset ta' the Autobot cause in the war!"

Goldstrike screamed as the punch landed, and again as the furious femme tightened her hold. Frag, no, this couldn't actually be happening. There was simply no way this dino was a second in command of anything, let alone... the... femme... ship... "That tiny mech, an asset to the Autobot cause? He acted more like a 'con, claiming t'be my equal and attacking me for no reason. Just like you're doing, SECOND IN COMMAND." Well... that wasn't quite what she'd meant to say...

"A' READ th' report, shit head," Loki growled darkly. "An' ya' luck A' don' just turn ya' over ta' mah friends, A' know ya' heard o' them, the twins o' terror." Laughing darkly, she leaned close again. "Ya' right ya' know, ya' not his equal. He's ABOVE ya' an' ya' stupidity… above an' beyond it!" With another laugh Loki pulled the femme away from the wall and slammed her back into it, feeling sadistic glee at the sound. "Do ya' KNOW what they'd do ta' ya'? A' do, they'd do far worse than A' will if ya' ever say anythin' bad 'bout Shadowsinger eva' again… so much worse…" Putting a bite into her words, the dinobot locked optics with the femme. "A'm sick o' ya' type bitch, ya' deserved a beatin' the second ya' messed with Shadow. If ya' hadn't made a smart ass comment 'bout not bein' a dude, none o' this woulda happened…"

Suddenly Goldstrike knew EXACTLY why even the 'cons feared the dinobots. She whimpered as the spiky femme filled her vision, blue optics blazing almost white and promising pain. Fear, finally, too late, far too late, shut down her vocalizer, robbing Goldstrike of haughty words and empty threats.

"No more bitchy answers?" Loki asked, anger starting to fade at the fear she had caused. With a snarl she loosened her grip and flung the femme under her shoulder grumbling. "Stupid femme an' 'er stupid fear… stupid conscious… Wish's gonna kick meh an' throw stuff… stupid temper… stupid…" She trailed off and stomped down the hall to Wishmaster's med bay, knowing full well that she was going to get yelled at.

Had the... dinofemme... Was she showing MERCY? Dinos didn't DO that, they were big strong brutes who attacked at the least provocation and kept attacking until they were dragged off their victim. This one... this one was acting almost... like an ordinary Autobot. And had actually befriended a tiny slip of a mech...

A nice, lazy day, maybe even some time to catch up with old friends... yeah, right. Wishmaster was a firm believer in nothing ever going as planned. And so he was really only a little surprised when Loki walked in carrying someone under her arm. Pointing at a berth, he asked sourerly, "So, what happened this time?" Hum, it was some bronze femme, not anyone he recognized... "And why'd you bring her HERE?"

"A' slagged her fo' messin' with me an' Shadow', sorry Wish', A' let mah anger get the betta o' me, A'm sorry." Loki said quickly, all ready to dodge tools or anything else in the medics reach…

A quick glance showed the femme wasn't actually all that bad off, though she did look pretty terrified of Loki. It wasn't a wrench-throwing occasion quite yet, he wanted a few more answers before he started that. "Well you don't LOOK injured, and Shadow' isn't even here. Just how was she 'messing with' you then?" he asked. The unknown femme opened her mouth to answer, and he glared at her until she showed some sense and remained silent.

"Well, a', ya' see…" Loki twitched nervously. "In Shadow's report it said tha' heh got in'a fight with a femme 'cause she harassed him, an' when she insulted meh an' A' realized who she was… A' snapped. Sorry, Wish'…" She trailed off nervously, optics locking with the femme's while Wishmaster's glare turned on full force.

Ah, so that was it. "As noble as your intentions might have been," Wishmaster started, "You can NOT go around avenging every little insult and argument like this, DON'T YOU INTERRUPT ME!" There the wrench flew, deliberately wide this time, as Loki seemed preparing to defend herself. "You attacked a comrade, left her in a med bay," another tool flew, this time at the injured femme, who was beginning to look smug. "And only re-enforced the stereotypes you are TRYING to end!" He finally finished, pointing at Loki, "Out! Get out, find out who her CO is, and GO APOLOGIZE! NOW!"

Goldstrike winced as the tool flew FAR too close to her head for comfort. That probably explained why the dino was standing there and simply letting this medic yell at her like that... She blinked at the content of the scolding, and then realized she was going to have to put up with this while she was repaired. Her estimation of the dino's intelligence rocketed up quite a bit at that. And... ah, slag.... erm, frag. If there was one thing she didn't want her CO to find out, insulting an officer was definitely at the top of the list.

"Aye, aye!" the dinobot yelled, turning and running out the door. She knew not to argue with Wishmaster when the medic got angry, being in the med bay often caused that knowledge! She continued running until she reached her office, quickly going through her record data-pads and finding the CO she was looking for. When she ended up at said CO's door though, she paused but Wishmaster's threat forced her to open the door.

Tiyem looked up in surprised as his door opened. There was no REASON for it to be opening, no-one was expected at this time, and... Femme? Big femme... and spiky. Dinobot? Here? What? "Um... May I, ah, help you?" A quick IR scan reviled the 2iC insignia, and he mentally groaned to himself. Just what had Goldstrike gotten herself into THIS time?

"Um, A'… uh…" Loki sighed and fidgeted, angry at herself for being so nervous. "A' kinda sent one o' ya' subordinates ta' th' med bay with a few bangs an' A' came ta' apologize." Still fidgeting the dinobot dearly wished she had controlled her temper…

Wait, WHAT? The mech looked at the fidgeting, FIDGETING? dinobot blankly. "Are... you... Do you mean Goldstrike? What did she do this time?" There was NO WAY a second in command had come all this way just to apologize over something like that... The mech continued his blank stare, optics flickering as the sheer weirdness of the situation threatened to overwhelm him. Maybe... she was talking about someone else, someone who hadn't started it...

"Aye… she said stuff 'bout mah' friend an' a' insulted meh an' A' snapped… an' A'm sorry fo' it." WHY was he staring at her like that?... "Did A' do somethin' wrong?" Slagging pit! What was she so nervous?! Loki was used to being yelled at, used to getting in trouble for Primus' sakes!

"Ah, I'm sorry, sir. It's just... You're APOLOGIZING for teaching Goldstrike a lesson?" He could not, simply could not, process that thought. Especially since it seemed that Goldstrike was, as usual, the instigator.

"Um, aye?" Loki said, strength coming back to her voice. "It was wrong'a meh ta' hurt anotha' Autobot an' even worse ta' be one not unda mah' command…"

Well... okay, she did have a point there... "Sir, no disrespect, but I've had to work with that femme a lot, and you and I both know she deserved whatever you gave her. And if she actually learns anything from this incident, I'll give you... um..." Tiyem trailed off, realizing that he really didn't have much to offer. He settled for a weak smile and saying, "I'll, ah, owe you?"

Oh, that was unexpected… "Aye…" Shaking her head Loki smiled and nodded, forcing all bad thoughts from her head and just accepting what she'd done. "Aye, A' can live with that." The dinobot fidgeted again slightly, still fairly embarrassed by the entire situation.

"So, this'll go down as another disciplinary event..." Tiyem muttered aloud. "Thank you for informing me, sir. ...And for getting her any required medical care," he added almost as an afterthought. "Was there anything else, sir?" Huh, he'd never realized dinobots could be cute.

"Naw… but if Wishmaster comes by, A' did apologize… um, he's mo' than a lil' mad at meh fo' hurtin' 'er…" Loki said, giving another smile before turning to leave, having thoroughly used up her embarrassment.

Feeling a sudden strong desire never to meet 'Wishmaster', the mech nodded. "I'll be quite sure to inform him, sir. And, ah, thanks for the warning..." What a strange crew she must be a part of... And may he never have to meet them.

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	2. Chapter 2

No Goldstrike in this chapter, and refers to characters from Light meets Dark, which isn't posted yet... but this chapter is still cute, and sets up the NEXT chapter. Follower by Loki until Loki shows up, then Shadow played him. Shadow also played himself, and Loki played HERself. And we don't own Transformers.  


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Follower twitched in slight fear as he carefully walked through the halls around him. He hated being called to different ships, it was almost as bad as when Goldstrike cornered him… and at that moment he wanted to get the low-grade energon and scrap he needed for his pets and then hide in his quarters until Lifter got off duty… yeah, that sounded really good.

Shadowsinger wasn't very fond of letting all these people wander around. Not that he distrusted the supply corps, not hardly... well, okay, knowing Goldstrike was on his ship right now didn't really make him happy, and he was having to resist the urge to go find her and settle their long ago argument... but that wouldn't achieve much. He was so deep in thought that he almost didn't notice the twitchy mech practically slinking down the halls. Almost. He looked familiar, but Shadowsinger couldn't remember who he was quite off-hand. "Y'lost? Need help?"

Squeaking in surprise, Follower barely looked up, shaking his head. "No, no I'm okay, sir…" He locked optics with the mech who'd spoke and froze. "I'm sorry sir, I didn't recognize you sir, Shadowsinger sir," Follower babbled, panicking slightly for some reason he couldn't put his finger on.

Oh, sweet Primus on a human's pogo stick! It was that terrified mech that he and Havok had guarded against Long Haul! What had his name been... His creator must have hated him, giving him the designation... "Follower?" Noticing the Autobot symbol on the panicking mech, and putting two and two together, Shadowsinger grinned. "Part of Tiyem's crew? And please, I never got used to being called sir, and I can't say I particularly like it. Use my name, or even just 'Shadow' if y'want."

"Yes sir. I mean Shadowsinger. I mean Shadow, sir… sorry," Follower stuttered out. "I was on my way to get stuff for the petrol-rabbits, sorry if I'm in your way, I'll go," he said quickly, already shrinking back and looking for an escape route.

Follower was SO lucky he'd been sent out with Killgazer that orn... and lucky Starscream had been such a fool. "Y'know, just call me whatever makes you comfortable, I'll deal. You're not in my way, I wasn't going... petrol-rabbits? You still have them, they're still alive? Whaddya want for 'em, I could show y'where it is..." With an embarrassed grin, Shadowsinger looked up at the still-frightened mech. "Um... if y'wouldn't mind... y'think I could see 'em?"

"Yessir!" Follower said, speaking rapidly. "I, um, need low-grade energon and soft scrap and, um, yeah they're still alive I, um, take care of them and, um, Lifter, Lifter helps sometimes." He was still babbling and he knew it but couldn't stop, shrinking back and waiting for a blow or a snap of annoyance as most mechs gave when fed up with him. True, he'd missed Shadowsinger, Shadow had been so nice but… he was still scared and unsure of the small mech, afraid of what he could do when provoked.

"Low-grade and soft scrap, right-o. Thissaway," Shadowsinger motioned, heading for the rec room. "Lifter's with ya too? Good t'know. How y'been?" He sighed suddenly as Follower flinched. "Goldstrike's in your crew, isn't she? Has she been causing you problems?"

"She's evil…" Follower muttered, following Shadowsinger carefully as he led the way. His lip trembled when the memory of the bronze femme humiliating him and… he didn't want to think about what else she did… The small mech looked down, "I'm… okay, how are you?"

"She is... she's actually the reason I suggested y'didn't mention my name..." Shadowsinger shrugged a little, willing enough to change the topic. He couldn't help everyone, and Follower would be gone long before Shadowsinger's words would even start to help. "Glad you're doin' okay. I'm, eh... well enough. CSO for what might be the most 'eccentric' crew ever... Holdin' up well enough." Reaching the recreation room, Shadowsinger gave a wave to Wei and directed Follower to the lowest grade of energon they had.

"Oh… well… thank you…" Quickly, Follower got what he needed, not wanting to waste Shadowsinger's time. He was happy to be near some one but was also still worried- no terrified to make the light colored mech angry, especially after seeing him in battle.

Still afraid... was that just Follower's... well, yes, most likely, and being around Goldstrike wouldn't have helped that... And this mech had twice seen him beserking at nearly the worst point in his life. "I'm not gonna hurt ya, Follower. Y'know... I think you're one of the only mechs who actually does fear me... I don't quite know how t'deal with it... Anyway, y'need help carrying anything? I'd still like t'see the rabbits, if I may, it's been..."

"You… you're not? But…" Returning to fidgeting silence the mech frowned before speaking, shaking his head. "I have it, and of course sir- I mean Shadowsin- I mean Shadow." The small mech looked away in embarrassment and surprise, why weren't more afraid of Shadowsinger? Had they not seen him fight...?

"That... was a bad time for me. The Cube had just gotten sent away, my lover was in danger and being hurt... Maybe I've just been on the Hyrde so long I forgot how normal crews viewed me," Shadowsinger answered the obvious question, even though it hadn't been asked. "And you'll have t'lead now, I dunno where they are."

"Yessir." Well that explained things so clearly… "Is… is he okay?" Follower asked hesitantly, coming up to the door of the temporary quarters they'd been given. "I'm sorry if its personal, I'll be quiet now Si-Shadow," He added quickly, returning to silence.

"I haven't seen him for a very long time," Shadowsinger answered, shaking his head a little. "It's okay, I don't object to you asking questions, long as y'don't mind if I don't answer. Y'know, if y'didn't act so afraid, bullies wouldn't pick on ya so." The pale mech shrugged and changed the subject. "Lifter helps ya with your pets? Does that mean he and you...?" he smirked, trying to get Follower to relax a little. He'd leave if this didn't work, even if he barely got to see the petro-rabbits. Hum, what would Wei say about them... Probably agree with Follower that they were cute. Well... they WERE.

Follower looked away quickly and nodded, biting his lower lip. "We… yes…" The rest of his words were a stuttered mess of unintelligible mumblings about high-grade… Leading the way to his set of petrol-rabbit cages, the small mech opened the first one and picked up the rabbit inside. "Here's Shadow… he's the nice one…"

"Well, congratulations," Shadowsinger replied, taking the offered critter. "So, you're my namesake? Hello there," he muttered to the bunny. The petro-rabbit twitched its nose in reply, and the mech laughed. "Looks like y'been keepin' good care of 'em."

"Thank you," said Follower quietly, he took the other out of its cage and started petting it. "Goldstrike tried to steal them… said I needed to give them to some one who could handle it… but I wouldn't let her…" The small mech looked almost ready to cry at the thought of his little pets gone, petting 'Vok absently.

"Slagging glitch," Shadowsinger snarled, feeling immediately guilty when Follower jumped. Instead of apologizing to the mech, though, he spoke to the rabbit, "Like anyone but Follower could take such lovely care of you! Isn't that just the silliest thing you've heard, oh namesake mine?" Bunny-Shadowsinger only wiggled his nose again, but the mech looked up at Follower happily. "Good for you."

Follower smiled slightly, "Thank you. I… I just couldn't let… let that monster hurt them…" He trailed off with a frown, remembering the argument and the use of force when Goldstrike wouldn't stop trying to take his precious petrol-rabbits…. Biting her and running had been one of the bravest things he'd ever done… well, minus the running part.

Figured, he'd fight for the rabbits but not himself. "No... these might be some of the last petro-rabbits in existence, figures she'd try to hurt them for her own petty..." With a hard cycle of vents, Shadowsinger forced away his anger at the absent femme. "Sorry, y'don't need me ranting. I just... yeah, really don't like her. I was actually wandering around trying to avoid her..."

Nodding in understanding Follower shivered, loosening up slightly. "It's okay, Lifter does it all the time, he hates her…" he said, finally relaxing around Shadowsinger more. The mech was so calm when not in the thick of battle and distress…

"He's likely got a lot more reason to than I do..." Shadowsinger muttered, petting the rabbit he still held. "All the more reason y'don't need me ranting. How about you, you wanna do any ranting?" He grinned, noticing that Follower was, finally, seeming to relax.

"No… I mean I don't think so…" Shifting the small mech held his own rabbit close, petting it carefully. He was a little surprised that Shadowsinger cared for his pets but refused to let it show, instead he smiled and grabbed the feeding dish of his pets, filling it carefully.

The petro-rabbit gave an interesting little wuff of air as it smelt the food, and Shadowsinger chuckled at it. "Nothin'? Well, if y'find ya do, rant away, I won't stop ya." The rabbit started given almost silent little squeaks, and the mech chuckled, trying to figure out what, exactly, he was supposed to do with the thing.

Setting the petro-rabbit in his hands down in its cage, Follower smiled as it started eating, holding out his hands to take the other from Shadowsinger. "Yessir," he said, adding the soft-metal treats to another dish and setting it inside. He was unsure of what to say, or even if he should speak and it was much too obvious for his tastes…

Handing the rabbit to the larger mech, Shadowsinger went to watch Havok's namesake drink some of the energon. Follower didn't know what to say to him, that was fine, he understood. Follower never knew him that well, was still afraid of him. "They really are cute... You do a wonderful job with them, thanks for letting me see 'em."

"I'm-I'm glad you like them! And no… thank you for letting me keep them, before…" Trailing off Follower stowed the small portion of left over supplies away while Shadowsinger watched his pets eat. Coming to stand next the cages again he started petting 'Vok, who'd finished eating and was cleaning his paws and ears. "They are cute… I wish I could see some of earth's animals though, Lifter says that it's amazing how some of them are made…"

"Aye tha's true, 'specially th' cool ones." Head popping into the room Loki grinned, "Sorry fo' interuptin' ya' guys an' fo' listenin', A' jus' din' wanna interrupt… Shadow, A' been lookin' fo' ya' an' Wei tol' meh ya' was with a newcomer." Looking at the small mech Loki knelt slightly. "'Lo, A'm Loki, wha's ya' name?"

Much to Shadowsinger's amusement, Follower chose to hide behind him. He was mildly annoyed that Follower was back to hiding, but considering how HE had felt about Loki at first... he hardly blamed the cowardly mech. "Hi, Loki. The mech behind me is Follower, I knew him before I joined. The petro-rabbits are Shadowsinger and Havok, and they've moved so I'm not sure which is which any more."

Follower was glad he was small... it meant he could effectively hide from the biggest, scariest femme he had EVER seen. Even Goldstrike didn't look as scary! Shadowsinger didn't seem afraid though... but he already knew Shadowsinger was brave.

"Awwww, cute!!" Cooing and giggling, Loki instantly crouched next to the cages, only to wince when she noticed how scared the small mech was. "A'm sorry… A'll leave ya' 'lone if ya' want…" Pulling back the dinobot looked down, hating when she scared people. "Ah jus' wanted ta' talk ta' Shadow, if ya' want A'll leave, its ya' quarters an' Ah shouldn't of barged in."

"N-no, sir... ah, Loki? Shadow... um, sirs? You don't, um, I mean..." Scary femme thought... the rabbits were cute...? "You really... um, think they're cute..." Well, Shadowsinger didn't seem to mind him using him as a shield... come to think of it, the smaller mech was probably used to it... "Oh! But if you need to talk, I-I don't mean to keep you, I mean, I've taken up enough of your time, I'm sure," he was babbling again.

"Oi' lil' guy, relax…" Giving Shadowsinger a look of curiosity, Loki leaned back down, "O' course A' think they're cute, who wouldn'?" She asked, "An' A' doubt tha' ya' taken up too much time…" Why was this guy so… terrified? Sure Loki was used to fear, but not terror… and after hurting a fellow Autobot… she felt her spark sink at the memory.

"Uh... most, I mean, a lot of people... well, they just... they say they're pests, and... and should..." Follower was shaking, and surprised when Shadowsinger rubbed a comforting hand against his arm.

Shadowsinger looked up at Loki sorrowfully. He knew she didn't like scaring people, and she already seemed to be troubled by something... "Follower's part of Tiyem's crew. Remember that femme I told y'bout, Goldstrike, the one I attacked that once? She's part of the crew too, been giving Follower some... ah, troubles about his pets. And he doesn't seem to quite believe that I'm happy to stay here and avoid... Loki? What's wrong?" The 2iC couldn't keep anything hidden, and he'd noticed the guilt that washed over her face when he mentioned the bronze femme.

"Well uh… A', uh… kinda… beat th' slag outa Goldstrike." Looking away quickly, the dinobot frowned, afraid that the admission would make Follower even more scared of her… maybe she could go hide out in her office, no one would think to look there…

Follower... wasn't quite sure what to make of that. For a moment, his confused processor thought this unknown femme had beaten the slag out of Goldstrike because of his petro-rabbits, but no, that didn't make any sense... She hadn't even known about the rabbits! He settled for looking up at Loki in wonderment while staying safe behind Shadowsinger.

"Good," Shadowsinger said deliberately. "But... ah, why? ...do I actually have to do work now?"

"She said some stuff 'bout ya' an' A' snapped… an'… don' go near Wish fo' awhile…" Loki said, studying the floor as if it was actually interesting. "Naw… A' 'pologized an' stuff but… ya' know meh…"

"Right..." Shadowsinger really doubted that had been the whole of it, but ah well. "Avoid Wish, right. And you ARE going to talk to me once the crew's gone. ...I want to hear this..." his voice went from stern to gleeful.

Follower whimpered a little and moved over to pet his rabbits. Goldstrike was going to be mad now, she always was the few times someone fought back. He just hoped she didn't come after his pets again... But he'd protect them, even Shadowsinger agreed he was taking good care of them, and that they were precious!

"Aye… but she won' be causin' trouble fo' 'while… A' kinda… yeah…" Fidgeting Loki studied Follower's petro-rabbits again, taking comfort in the fact that the weren't scared of her at least. "Ya' owner takes good care o' ya' don' he? Ah bet so… ya' two ah so cute 'n cuddly…"

"S-shadow just said, I mean, the real one, not the rabbit, of course, rabbits don't talk, he just... said the same... Um... they're still eating or I'd... um... let you hold... one..." As he spoke, Follower realized how silly that sounded. Oh, he was sure that the femme could hold one... but he was afraid the poor bunny would bolt and get lost! No, no, no, couldn't have that!

"Tha's okay, A' don' need ta' hold 'em…" Loki said, maybe it was a bad idea to try and find her friend… maybe she should've just hid in her office and done the stupid fragging paperwork that'd been piling up instead… and amazingly, that sounded like a good idea…

"Oh, ah, okay..." Follower looked lost, and Shadowsinger noticed.

Smiling, as always, the small mech looked up at the other. "Thanks for letting me see them, Follower. I enjoyed meeting you again. Tell Lifter I said hello, okay?"

"I will!" Follower agreed eagerly. "He'll, ah, I think he'll like to hear that... And what you said about Shadow and Havok... um..." He realized how weird that sounded, and flinched a little.

"Aw ya' named 'em that? That's so cute!..." Depression momentarily forgotten Loki smiled, "A'll be sure ta' tease ya' 'bout this Shadow!" she said happily, allowing Shadowsinger to lead her out of the room but not without yelling back to Follower. "See ya'! A'll be sure ta' visit an' see the rabbits some time!"

To his own surprise, Follower found himself nodding, eagerly accepting the scary femme's promise. "Ah, sure, I'll... um, look forward to it! It was, ah, nice seeing you again, Shadow, and meeting... ah, Loki?" He waved as the two left before going back and watching his pets eat with a smile. For once, he didn't feel like he was hiding in his room as he waited for Lifter to return.

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	3. Chapter 3

Goldstrike just doesn't learn... Anyway, this takes place basically right after chapter 2, which was right after chapter 1... yeah. Loki played herself, and Shadow was busy playing GS, Shadow, Wish, and Tiyem. ...Shadow needs new hobbies... And no, we don't own Transformers.  


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Looking behind her more than before, Goldstrike carefully walked through the halls of the ship, trying to get back to the guest quarters without any... further meetings with that dinofemme. Checking supplies was so boring, though. Why couldn't the ship's OWN supply officer take care of this, why did Tiyem's crew need to get involved? Oh, probably because she was ANOTHER dinobot... The bronze femme was so busy with her self-pity that she almost missed hearing the low moans and gasps coming from somewhere ahead.

Shadowsinger writhed a little against the wall, pinned there forty feet off the ground by Loki's hand. He should probably be worried, they were in the hall, anyone could walk by... the only reason that was a worry, really, was because of the visiting supply corp... Well, they could fragging well deal, he LIKED Loki pinning him, licking at him, and he certainly didn't care if anyone saw!

Grinning widely, Loki continued her touches, enjoying the low moans coming from her friend. She couldn't help but get him back! He was climbing around INSIDE, under her armor, teasing her!! Shadow had been practically begging to be molested…! Growling low in her throat, Loki dug her fingers in and pinched one of the more sensitive wires near his shoulders, humming from the groan it caused.

Goldstrike watched, frozen, as the one femme she didn't want to meet... Was she actually FORCING that mech? It had to be, there was no way someone would willingly interface with a dinobot, unusual as that particular dinofemme might be. Especially not someone so small, why, he couldn't even do anything to stop her, he was trapped! But she... really... didn't want to get the large femme angry at her again... A low growl made up her mind, and she stepped closer. "Stop that!"

Someone... was watching, ooh... wait, 'stop'? Stop... who the pit... Still squirming, Shadowsinger turned to look... "Goldstrike?" Abruptly, his arousal died, he liked being a show, sure, but apparently there were some people that even he wouldn't preform for.

Growling, Loki turned to whomever had interrupted her fun, ready to tell them to frag off, only to freeze. Oh great, it had to be HER! Loosening her grip on Shadowsinger, the dinobot frowned, glaring. Primus, why couldn't this femme just leave her alone...? Still holding him, she growled again, ready to defend them from any verbal attack that could be coming.

"And here I actually thought you were different," Goldstrike said, honest disgust and a trace of disappointment coloring her voice. "I guess the truth does come out..." She looked at the small mech... wait... she knew this one. It was that little dancer mech! "You... Heh, that desperate, are you, you'll even let a dinobot take you?" Her estimation of the situation was changing rapidly, and the little mech didn't look like he wanted help...

Slithering out of the loosened grasp, Shadowsinger used a couple of the short spines on Loki's arm for balance while he clambered over to her shoulder. Had she really just... accused Loki of forcing him? ...and accused HIM of allowing it for desperation's sake? If the accusation had been less dire, he would have laughed.

"'Eh? Watcha talkin' 'bout?!" The spinosaurus dinobot scowled when she realized that Goldstrike was thinking she was FORCING herself on Shadow! She'd NEVER do that… unless they were over-energized… but then that wouldn't even be forcing still… Shaking her head, she looked at her friend to see if he was okay, only to find Shadowsinger looking rather… half-surprised and half about to laugh his aft off.

"Oh, I almost forgot, I'm speaking to a dinobot..." Goldstrike fell on her habitual superior drawl. "I don't know WHAT your problem is... well no wonder you were so quick to defend him, he's probably the only one who lets you use him like this... And here in the hall where anyone could see... You've really let your power go to your tiny little CPU, haven't you?" Sneering, she just shook her head a little at the mech, who really didn't seem very embarrassed by the situation at all...

That got a little too close... because Shadowsinger knew that Loki was only really with Rainstrip and himself. Jumping off the dinobot, he had to roll a little on landing, good thing he had plenty of practice. "How dare you insult Loki like that?" he growled, actually lining up his sonic cannon. He was only going for intimidation or he would have shot, already pissed at Goldstrike for what Follower had told him, and then what Loki had mentioned before he slipped inside her.

"Shadow, no…" Stepping up, Loki picked up her friend to keep him from shooting the idiot femme. Anger twisted through her but she held it back, focusing on keeping from tearing into Goldstrike for the second time in one day. "Jus' relax bro, A'll rub ya' down an' we'll get some high-grade… o' something'." It was all she could to keep her cool with the disgusted look on the femme's face and all the crap she was saying.

Goldstrike stiffened when she saw the mech preparing to attack, he would attack, too, she knew that. She couldn't help but feel relieved when Loki picked him back up, clearly trying to relax him... "Brother? Hah, he was trying to say he was some high-class creation... Knew he was lying when he wouldn't say who his Creator was, and if he's just your brother..."

It wasn't even the accusation of lying that sent Shadowsinger leaping off of Loki to land on Goldstrike. It was his already simmering anger, her continuous and insulting disdain for his claimed sister. With every bit of the cold rage that he could show on the battlefield, the pale mech cut, going for painful but non-crippling and non-lethal blows. After all, what was the point of a lesson if the student died? "You call me a liar, insult my claimed sister, is there NOTHING you will not stoop too?"

"Shadow! Shadowsinger!! SLAGGIT STOP!!" Loki growled, grabbing the mech's arms and pulling him away from Goldstrike's beaten form. "Stop it now, bro." The dinobot wrapped one of her arms around her friends waist and held on while the other stroked him calmingly. "Shadow, calm down now, A' know ya' mad, an' A' am too, but ya' know A'm used ta' idiots like her… it's okay… ya' don' gotta lower 'urself ta' her level o' even teach 'er a lesson…" Loki spoke soothingly, touching her friend to calm him, and her own self, down, her anger still bubbling over as well, but as much as the words stung… the dinobot truly was used to them.

Laying on the floor and slowly leaking, Goldstrike mutely watched the dinobot holding the enraged mech. She couldn't think, pain and shock stilling her processor as she watched Loki calm Shadowsinger with surprising tenderness for a dinobot, especially considering how rough she had been when the bronze femme had found them.

Vents cycling madly, Shadowsinger let Loki calm him. "Y'shouldn't HAVE t'be 'used' t'em... It's idiots like her who STARTED this war... bah, I told 'er that before and she wouldn't listen then..." Lower himself... Loki had a point, and surely she was as angry as he was... "Cut some data lines. Unknown if she can walk. Repairs easy. Pain, intense." Calm down... don't let her get to him, he shouldn't have let Goldstrike get to him again.

Arms loosely wrapped around the small mech, Loki could tell her friend was still upset. "Come on now bro, it's okay, it's okay, le's get 'er ta' Wish' an' then get ya' some'in ta' calm ya' down. A'll talk ta' 'Bit 'bout it an' it'll be okay…" Looking into Shadow's optics, the dinobot rubbed his shoulders in circles. "It'll be okay, A' promise, 'k? A' know what'll make ya' feel betta'! A'll get anotha' set o' Screamer's wings fo' ya', even if they come after ma fin 'gain!" Primus, Loki hoped the offer would relax Shadow more… and that when she DID get the wings, Starscream WOULDN'T attack again… She knelt and picked up the femme carefully after setting Shadow on her shoulder, letting him calm down there and giving him full access if he wanted to climb inside… which, knowing him, he would want to do.

Goldstrike whimpered again as Loki reached for her, smothering a short cry when the dinobot actually picked her up. Not that the dino was rough, far from it, she was far more gentle than Goldstrike would have been in her place. Of course, this meant she was going to see their medic again... that fate was almost as bad as being left leaking on the flo... well, no, it wasn't. But frag it all, she HAD to stop getting attacked like this... That mech had seriously hurt her!

"'E better NOT go after y'fin again... I can help ya get the wings?" Shadowsinger allowed his annoyance at Goldstrike fade under his loathing for Starscream. He glared a little at the bronze femme as Loki picked her up, and then decided he didn't really want to put up with her, at least not yet, and well, Loki was giving him access... "Yeah... It'll be 'kay," the mech murmured before slipping in to the warmth and safety Loki was offering, ignoring Goldstrike's squeak of disbelief.

"Aye bro, ya' can come too," the dinobot said, absently shifting the battered femme in her arms to a more comfortable position. "Don' feel ta' bad, I fragged her up too before, 'member?" Maybe that would help relax her friend, and it wasn't really Shadow's fault Goldstrike couldn't keep her mouth shut… "Comfy?" Loki asked, partially as a statement, feeling him crouch under armor.

The reminder of the last time she had been in this position got another whimper from Goldstrike. This time it was worse, she didn't look as bad, but those cuts had been calculated to cause pain... she understood now why the mech had ran last time. Speaking of which... Sweet Primus, he'd gone under the dinofemme's armor.

Wishmaster looked up as the door to medbay opened. Taking in Loki's cargo, the medic cycled air in annoyance. "Her again? What happened this time?" he snapped, looking at Loki critically and pointing to a berth.

Shadowsinger poked his head out of Loki's shoulder, looked at Wishmaster with a grimace, and then climbed fully out of the dinobot's armor. He would face the medic on his own. ...mostly. From Loki's shoulder. "I, kinda... was teasin' Loki, and she decided t'... heh, pay me back. Goldstrike kinda... found us, jumped t'some conclusions... insulted us... um, and I kinda attacked..."

Wincing, the spinosaurus tried to avoid Wishmaster's optics, knowing full well that she was going to be slagged as well as Shadowsinger for the situation… "A' had ta' pull him off an' calm him down…" with another wince, she sat the femme down on the pointed to berth and finally looked at the very angry medic in front of her.

"WHAT, in the name of all that is holy, is WRONG with you? You," he pointed at Loki just so that everyone knew exactly who he was addressing right now, "Can't you keep your hands OFF your lover long enough get to a room? No, don't answer that I don't want to know! And when you KNEW we had other people on board!" Turning away from Loki, Wishmaster glared at the, admittedly contrite, bronze femme, whipping a wrench at her before using his voice to chastise her. "And you, this is, what, the second time that you've got yourself slagged with your stupid assumptions just today! If your big mouth gets you in my med bay one more time, I am gonna MUTE you, do you understand me?" At Goldstrike's nervous nod, Wishmaster turned on the last of the three, throwing a smaller tool with dead-on accuracy. "I do not care what your excuse is. I thought you were better than this! Protecting Loki's reputation is all well and good, but this is not acceptable. Out! Loki knows who her CO is, she can take you to explain to him why one of his subordinates is in my medbay AGAIN. Out, now!" With two final missiles, one each for Loki and Shadowsinger, the medic turned to Goldstrike again, this time to heal instead of chastise.

Dazedly hanging onto a spine, Shadowsinger tried not to worry about how close he'd come to falling off... There was a REASON he tried to stay on Wishmaster's good side, and it wasn't just because it was slagging stupid to torque off a medic, after all. "Ah' neva'... ooh, right, Tiyem... Where's 'e?" He liked spines... such nice handholds...

"Tiyem should be in th' visitors office…" Loki reached up to hold a hand out in case Shadow lost his footing and grip, wincing at Wishmaster's temper. She led the way to the mentioned office, wondering just what Tiyem would say to them about this. Of course it couldn't be good, not like her last meeting with the mech… "Ya' gonna be okay, bro? A' could do this 'lone if ya' wanted…" she said, looking at Shadowsinger questioningly.

Looking at the stacks of datepads, Tiyem sighed as he realized he was missing a report. No surprise there, Goldstrike usually needed a few 'reminders' to get her reports in, if she was even out of the medbay yet...

"No, sis, I be good..." Shaking his head slightly, Shadowsinger did a quick reboot of his sensor net, then spoke again. "Okay, NOW I'm okay. So, I've not actually met Tiyem, I know he lets Follower keep the rabbits, but what's he like?"

"Well he thanked me last time I beat th' slag outa tha' femme…" Loki paused and sighed, stopping at the office door. "He's pretty cool, didn' yell at meh b'fore…" the mech was, in fact, an okay guy, after not being yelled at the spinosaurus had checked out his file and found he was one of the more lax commanders that the Autobots possessed, even more lax than herself.

When the door opened, Tiyem barely did more than sigh when he saw Loki. "Hello, sir. Goldstrike still giving you problems?" he asked, assuming this wasn't just a friendly visit. Pity, that, he thought he'd rather enjoy a friendly visit... Noticing the small mech on her shoulder, the mech put his work down. "Oh, sorry, didn't see you, um... up there?"

With his normal grin, Shadowsinger jumped off and landed on Tiyem's desk. "S'k, I'm easy t'miss. Did have a bit of a... ah, run-in with Goldstrike, though..." He glanced at Loki, would she rather tell the story, perhaps, since she did technically outrank him...

"Aye, she got sent ta' Wish' a'gain… sorry. A' was doin' some'tin in the middle o' the hall that A' shouldn't, an' well… she got slagged 'gain…" With a sigh Loki put her hand on Shadow's shoulders protectively. "An' this lovely lil' mech did it this time, naw't meh…"

Tiyem gave Loki a rather confused look before noticing how she handled the mech. With a grin, he nodded slightly. "Well, I'll trust you to discipline your own crew. Ah... How bad's the damage this time?" He was going to have to give that medic some form of thanks... Hum, he'd worry about that later. "And I'm truly sorry that she's been so difficult... normally it doesn't affect others like this..."

Shadowsinger shrugged slightly. "Nothing particularly dangerous... just painful. Still, I shouldn't... have lost my temper." He shouldn't have, he was better than that.

Hoping to comfort the small mech more, Loki rubbed his back discreetly. Looking at Tiyem, the dinobot gave a light laugh, shaking her head. "If it didn' set in yet, it sure did now… an' it was a' nat'ral thought pattern but… she didn' go 'bout it the right way…" Loki cringed, it was hard to jump around what the femme saw her doing to Shadow… oh well, might as well say it… "I was molestin' him an' ya' femme found us…"

Managing a pretty flat look at that, Tiyem asked, "In the middle of the hallway? Forgive me for, ah, interfering in your affairs, sir, but... I know quite well that you do, in fact, have rooms on this ship, and that the doors do, in fact, work." This was said in a lightly amused tone, before the mech turned serious again. "So I assume she thought... I apologize, my crew is more... discreet about such things. And, as you know, Goldstrike is not... the most subtle of femmes."

"Actually, ah, the crew's rather... used t'comin' 'cross me in... interesting situations..." Shadowsinger managed to look utterly unrepentant at the thought. "And, well... yeah. Oh! For the love of Primus, can you do anything to stop her pickin' on poor Follower?"

"Well… I's normal, A' mean… um… ya' don' wanna know how many times A've been caught or A've caught otha's in… interestin' positions too… We're a ratha' open group, an' its no biggy really, A' jus' forgot ya' crew was 'ere…" trailing off Loki added a nod. "Aye, A'd rather not have ta' slag 'ere 'gain, but… A' will if somethin' happens…" the dino made a face, showing that she meant it, and growled slightly.

Primus, this crew had to be the oddest in the fleet. "Yes," Tiyem agreed. "Others of my crew have already mentioned... ah... Anyway, I'll have another talk with Goldstrike once she's out of your medic's bay, and I'll trust you to, ah..." he waved his hand a little at the pair, not really sure what he was saying. "And I'll see what I can do about her bothering Follower..." Tiyem was surprised the mech even knew Follower, but, well, it was good to be reminded to keep an optic on the coward.

Shadowsinger nodded and gave a wave. "Good on ya. So, guess we should be goin'..." He wasn't quite sure what he was doing himself, and settled for jumping off the desk and heading for the door. He was pretty sure things were still going to escalate... maybe he should start on paperwork. Maybe he could convince Loki to finish what got interrupted, first, though... Thinking, the pale mech left the office.

Following Shadowsinger, the first think Loki did when they were far enough away was snatch the small mech up and press him against the wall. "WHERE were we before we were so rudely interrupted?" she asked, growling delightedly and licking Shadow with her glossa. "O' yes, A' almost forgot, A' was makin' ya' squirm an' moan… well, gotta finish what A' started, no?"

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Hehehe. Please leave a review!


	4. Chapter 4

And the third, and so far final, chapter with Goldstrike. ...and currently the last chapter period... eh. ROLECALL! Shadow/Kd Zeal played Goldstrike and Shadowsinger and Tiyem and Loki a couple times, Loki played herself other times, Sunblazer/LittleMewLugia played herself, Caz played HERself, and Xobit played herself. And none of us own Transformers! And believe me, I don't WANT to own Goldstrike.  


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Ego still smarting from the sever lecture the 'medic' had given her, medic yeah right, okay so he did an okay job, but if that was a medic, then Follower was a confident leader! Goldstrike walked into the rec room, slate blue, what the PIT was wrong with this femme ship, couldn't they do anything right, such colorful halls and rooms... Grumbling to herself, the bronze femme went to get some energon, completely disregarding the smaller red femme who was just leaving the dispenser.

Sunblazer had just drawn herself a cube of energon after a difficult maintenance work shift and was looking forwards to relaxing with her friends, Caz and Loki. As she turned to head for the table, a taller, bronze-colored femme blundered right into her. Already off-balance because she was pivoting, and smaller than the other femme, who seemed to be in a hurry, Sunblazer was knocked to the floor, the energon going all over herself, the floor, and up the bronze femme's legs. The bronze femme didn't stop to apologize, barely seemed to notice her. "Hey, watch where ya goin', won't ya?" asked Blazer, annoyed and embarrassed.

Caz was sitting with Loki after her shift, enjoying a well-earned cube of energon at one of the tables in the Rec room. She heard Sunblazer cry out as a large bronze femme knocked her over, spilling her energon everywhere. Caz got up slightly as Sunblazer warned the femme to watch where she was going, also giving Loki a look which asked, "Trouble?"

"Why you... you got fuel all OVER me, you clumsy femme! What is WITH this crew, you're all so disrespectful..." Before she went too much further, Goldstrike remembered to do a scan... nope, this one wasn't any kind of officer, not like that slagged up dinofemme... scary dino... Nope, this was just someone... perfect for her. Maybe she could forget her embarrassing run-ins with that dinobot...

Said dinobot just nodded a little at Caz, she couldn't BELIEVE that femme had dared to show her face again... Well, let Sunblazer tell her off this time, but she'd intervene if she had to.

"I'M clumsy?" Sunblazer asked. "I'm not the person who just walked into someone else carrying energon as though she didn't exist! I may be smaller than you, but I'm not THAT small. Maybe if you looked more and rushed less...?" Blazer said, amazed and angered at the bronze femme's high-handed and snooty attitude.

Goldstrike managed to puff up, "Why you UPPITY little femme. Anyone with half a processor could see I was there, if you had WATCHED what you were doing you might have at LEAST managed to avoid getting your energon all over me, though clearly it's too much to hope that you wouldn't have wasted it at all. Now move, I've had a hard day and I don't want to be here any longer than I HAVE to be."

"And anyone with a quarter of a processor would've seen me, red and bright pink clash, right?" Sunblazer was furious that this wretched bronze menace was blaming HER. "When energon falls on the floor, it hits the floor and splatters up? Or is your processor so glitched it doesn't understand basic physics?"

Sunblazer KNEW she ought to be being diplomatic, or at least walking away and relaxing as she'd intended, but she had had enough. "And no, I'm not moving until I've got myself another energon, and then I'll ask someone if they can find something to clean up your pretty legs with – or you could ask someone to lick them clean if you'd prefer. Now, if you don't mind, I'll get my energon and leave you to debug your system!" She turned back to the dispenser.

Loki growled as Goldstrike put a hand on Sunblazer. "Are you volunteering, little femme?" the arrogant bronze femme sneered, trying to shove the slightly smaller Autobot down. "After all, you're the one who CAUSED this mess, so it's only right that you clean it up."

Sunblazer resisted the shove: this arrogant femme got one last chance. "Take your hands off me, or I'll do it for you. Painfully," Sunblazer growled.

"You are so quick to VIOLENCE here," Goldstrike sniffed, pushing harder. "I seriously wonder why you're even allowed to call yourselves Autobots, you're all so... Well, NOT."

Sunblazer stiffened, this femme had insulted not just HER, but her friends. "These guys are more Autobot than you'll ever be, Bronzie. As for me, I have an excuse…although it wasn't by choice, I didn't start fighting as an Autobot…"

Before the bronze femme could react, Sunblazer dropped as if she were about to start licking the femme's legs, which freed her from the femme's grip. Then she exploded upwards, shooting her hands out and up, striking the taller femme in the chest and chin, knocking her back. She managed to regain her footing as Sunblazer spun, lashing out with her foot, quickly followed by her arms. Goldstrike couldn't stand up against this, falling to the floor. Sunblazer lashed out again with a foot, flipping the bronze femme over three times. When the femme rolled to a standstill, Sunblazer pounced, kneeling on her, grabbing one wrist to hold out of the way. The other was trapped under the femme's own body, Sunblazer's weight keeping Goldstrike from wiggling it free. Sunblazer's free hand was at the femme's head, wrist blades out and hovering close to her neck.

"You fragging, scrapbuilt, gitched-up, Pitspawned sparkling of the Unmaker, you have just insulted me, my friends, and my Prime." Sunblazer took a breath, locking her optics with Goldstrike's. "Just because I'm smaller than you, you think you're so much better than I am. I remember someone else who had that attitude, that size matters." She paused before delivering her next sentence. "Yes, you're just like him. You remind me of Starscream."

Holding her energon, Caz stood. Hearing the femme put her friend and the whole ship down, including her Prime, she slammed the energon cube down on the table, slopping the liquid slightly over the edges. "You stupid, snooty bitch, you're enjoying our hospitality! Respect it! I saw you knock Sunblazer over and spill the energon, you asked for that, it's all your fault!"

Goldstrike wasn't quite sure she was hearing correctly. Of course, a large portion of that might be from the pain rolling through her recently repaired body. Had her attacker just admitted to having been Decepticon? Well, she had to have, or... Had she just been compared to STARSCREAM? "Why... you... you..." Wetness seeped under her, and yet another femme came to the red one's defense, and Goldstrike only kept from screaming in outrage because she didn't want to do anything that might confirm that insulting comparison.

Sunblazer glared back down at the stammering femme, one part of her wanting to gloat, another pitying the bronze femme her narrow-processored outlook on life. Eventually, both sides came to a compromise. "Let me guess?" Sunblazer asked. "You're from the privileged classes, never knew privation or hardship, never bothered to value people for who they were or could be, only for their social standing?"

Despite her place on the floor, with the red femme's blades uncomfortably close to her throat, Goldstrike sniffed. "As though there's any difference! You're all the same on this ship, uncivilized..." A very familiar growled caused Goldstrike's words to die, slag, that dinofemme was in here too?

Sunblazer's voice turned very soft, dangerously soft. "Considering that I, a so-called 'uncivilized', ex-'Con femme, am sitting here with my blade at your neck, close to vital energon lines, do you really think that insulting my friends is an intelligent, pro-survival thing to do?" With effort, Sunblazer allowed her blades to slide away, resting the hand on Goldstrike's shoulder instead. "Luckily for you, I am not the uncivilized killer you seem to assume I am." She glanced at Loki, who was clearly riled. "Looks like Loki doesn't like you dissing her crew, either."

"And what is going on here?" Xobit would not normally just walk in on her crew, but the noises had been less than normal and one optical sweep told her that a fight was in progress. "Caz, Sunblazer and... you, bronze one, in my office now!" Her normal pleasant voice had turned to a growl.

Ah, slag, it looked like that stupid bronze bitch had gotten them into trouble. Sunblazer had to admit that she had also been insulting, but only when Goldstrike had given her and her friends insult. Ah well, she'd recount the conversation – thank Primus for her habit of memorizing conversations almost instinctively – and let Xobit decide who was in the right, who was in the wrong, and what punishments would be meted out. Whatever was coming, Blazer would take it. After all, Xobit was her Prime. She would go along with whatever was decided... although Caz hadn't done more than shout at Goldstrike, that she would point out in her recounting of the story.

Sunblazer rolled off Goldstrike and got to her feet. She was about to turn away when she remembered something. "By the way, we never did exactly exchange names in a civilized manner, did we? I'm Sunblazer, Sunburst and Freefall's creation." She paused, "We lived in a very exclusive part of Iacon, you know, reserved for people like my Creators, who had important work like they did. You see, you may recognize my Creator's names, seeing as they were caretakers of the AllSpark. So, you see, my social status was equal to yours. In fact, probably higher." With that as her parting shot, Sunblazer turned, motioned to Caz to follow, and walked out of the rec-room.

Caz followed Sunblazer and the bronze femme out of the room on the instructions of the Prime… She knew the names and, although she had not been hauled up before the Prime before, was sure she'd got her facts right on this, that Sunblazer was not at fault and the bronze femme had been asking for it, though she guessed she was not to know there was an ex-Decepticon on this ship.

She wasn't sure who the purple femme was, purple, really, what was WRONG with this crew... but the way the admitted former Decepticon jumped to obey gave Goldstrike the idea that the purple femme was someone important. Snarling slightly as 'Sunblazer' introduced herself, Goldstrike blatantly withheld her own name. Equal status, as if. If she'd been half as high as she claimed, she would have been an Autobot from the beginning... then again, most of the caretakers had ended up with Megatron in the end. All the more reason not to trust them, any of that class. Sullenly, she followed the femmes to an office... suddenly, things weren't looking too good for her.

Xobit did not wait for the three femmes to obey, she knew that Loki was watching and that the dinobot would make sure that any who tried to sneak out of it were delivered to her office... not that she even entertain the thought that her own crew would be that stupid. Almost stalking into her office, thoroughly annoyed, she sat down on her desk and crossed her arms as the three femmes filed in after her. "I really do hope there is a good explanation for this! Now you..." Barking the order harshly, Xobit's optics landed on the unknown femme. "Name, rank and preferably a reason for you being on my ship." The femme didn't react fast enough for Xobit's already foul temper. "NOW!"

Oh, frag, really not looking well. "Goldstrike, requisitions, working under Tiyem, here to preform inventory, sir, ah, ma'am." The bronze femme winced a little at the sheer force of the purple femme's clear order. This was... very much not going to go well... At least Tiyem was usually sensible, and she could always threaten Follower's petrol-rabbits later, that usually made her feel better, stupid mech.

Sunblazer could see that her Prime was, quite frankly, torqued. As the three filed in, Xobit sat on her desk, crossed her arms, and looked over them all. It was the bronze femme she addressed. She did not even ask about what happened at first and who did what, merely asked her name rank, and reason for being aboard... Primus, judging by the tone of her voice, Xobit was beyond torqued. The bronze femme seemed to have enough sense to reply, even if not fast enough for Xobit's tastes.

For once, the anger and shouting were not directed at her, for which Caz was glad. Goldstrike, huh, what a name. Xobit would make mincemeat of her…requisitions, were they requisitioning the ship?

Primus, good thing she'd answered like that, but she had the feeling Prime wouldn't think it a good answer entirely, the atmosphere had not changed one little bit…

"It's Prime... not ma'am." Her voice dripped ice as she measured the small bronze femme, that name... wait! She remembered the name, it had been in Shadowsinger's files an incident, a fight? Considering that most others were fights... so that was likely, and now here the femme was, again involved in yet another fight. "Explain to me why one of my recon specialists had you pinned to an energon covered floor... Make it a good and detailed explanation, I do not appreciate omissions or lies..." Casting a warning glance on Sunblazer and Caz, Xobit fixed her unwelcome guest with hard optics and cold face plate, the little one had one chance!

Goldstrike actually whimpered as the purple, PURPLE, femme was revealed to be the Prime of this crew... and no-one would be stupid enough to claim Prime status without actually HAVING it. "She... she attacked me, si- ma- ah, Prime! I was... just coming down for some energon, and she wasn't watching where she was going, and she ran into me and spilled energon all over me and wouldn't apologize, and then she just... attacked!"

Sunblazer opened her mouth to respond, outraged by how Goldstrike had twisted it, but shut it before anything came out. No, she would wait untill she was asked. She satisfied herself with shooting Goldstrike a look, part venom, part disdain. Oh, she had memorized the entire conversation, and the sequence of actions... And she would recite them verbatim to Xobit Prime. She would not leave things out, or lie, and she had Caz to back her up… and Loki had seen it too, if Xobit thought that their friendship might compromise her account. Sunblazer would omit nothing, and tell no lies…unlike Goldstrike, who had blatantly done both.

Looking at Xobit Prime, Caz took in her hard expression, as Goldstrike threw herself forward with her version of the facts. It was true Blazer had attacked the femme, but that was after the femme had knocked her over, spilt her energon and insulted her and everyone on the ship.

She looked worried, her gut reaction would have been to leap to Blazer's defense with the real story, but from past experience she knew Xobit Prime would know she was stretching the truth and telling lies... so Caz heeded the Prime's warning glance and waited to be asked to give her account of the incident.

Giving only a soft knock as a warning before she entered, Loki nodded at her Prime and quietly walked to the corner of the room to stand. The femme she'd slagged was at it again, unbelievably at it again… it had taken all her willpower to hold back attacking Goldstrike as she verbally assaulted her friends, and now in Xobit's office… the dinobot could let loose if need be.

"Stop!" The femme was lying, and knew she was lying, which did not help Xobit regain her cool. This was beginning to look like a bad day... "Caz, report!"

Caz was burning to report anyway. Blue optics blazing, she stood up straight and began, "Y'see, Prime, Sunblazer was just coming back from her shift, and had got herself an energon, when this femme barged in to the dispenser and knocked 'Blazer over..." The recitation continued, right up to "...and that's where you walked in Prime, y'know the rest!" She paused to suck air through her vents.

"It's not MY fault the little femme was in my way! Anyway, she's smaller than I am, she's supposed to be the one moving out of the way of us bigger femmes!" As she spoke, Goldstrike suddenly remembered that tiny little dancer-mech was on this ship... and had found quite the interesting, if improper, way to avoid worrying about larger people. Surprisingly, the bronze femme retained enough sense NOT to bring that up. "And, I mean, I'm SORRY, Prime, maybe you don't realize how your crew acts when you're not around, but so far I've been attacked by THREE of them, just for going about my business! How is that not violent?"

"When I want your opinion, Goldstrike, I will ask for it!" Xobit snapped, standing up with her hands on her hip joints, anger making her faceplate blank. The little one was making no bones of thinking herself superior... and Xobit did not like to be equaled to such an narrow minded little glitch. "Sunblazer, report!" that order was also barked out, not that she was all that angry with the red femme, apart from the fact that she should have been able to control herself. In reality, she was more disappointed with her crew than angry, her anger was directed at the bronze femme.

Sunblazer hid her nervousness at the tone of Xobit's voice. Oh well, what had happened had happened, at least she could put some of Goldstrike's twisted account to rights. She stood straight and looked Xobit in the optics, and told her the truth. It was not only the most sensible thing, to do, as Xobit seemed to recognize a lie, no matter how subtle, but Sunblazer also respected Xobit WAY too much to even THINK of telling an untruth.

"Well, I must disagree with Goldstrike's account in several ways, both content-wise and the chronology," answered Sunblazer. "For a start, I was not running, I was at the energon dispenser, having just drawn a cube. I was just pivoting to head for the table where Caz and Second-In Command Loki were sitting when Goldstrike barged into me. As I was off-balance, I fell, and the energon went all over the floor, me, and Goldstrike. I was, I felt, perfectly in the right to say what I did to Goldstrike, which was, and I quote, 'Hey, watch where ya goin' won't ya?' However, Goldstrike's response was…" Sunblazer continued her verbatim, blow-by-blow account of the altercation in the rec-room, trusting Loki and the Prime's optic contact and body language to stop Goldstrike from interrupting. She detailed hers, Caz's and Goldstrike's remarks and actions up to and beyond the moment when Xobit had walked in the rec-room to witness the debacle.

"I admit that I could, and should, have used more diplomacy, I confess that my comment about somebody licking the energon off Goldstrike's legs was an inflammatory one, I admit I threatened her with violence. However, I found her attitude and comments equally inflammatory, and she was the first to make physical contact, in an attempt to make me lick her legs. That was when I threatened her, and her response, as I mentioned, was to press down harder and insinuate that we should not be called Autobots because, in her words we were, and I quote, 'so….NOT.'" She paused, then added, "Maybe if her comment had been just about me, I would have laughed, but she insulted the whole ship, including you, and I just..snapped. I suppose we should be able to take a few insults, but her attitude and the increased pressure on my shoulders was just the last thing in a string of things that annoyed me, so….I made good of my promise and took her hands off me. Painfully." She hung her head. "Yes, I admit I threatened her, my blades were out, but she continued to make inflammatory remarks. I told her, as I mentioned earlier, that she was lucky I was not as uncivilized as she thought, or I may not have let her live, but I actually retracted my blades, and that's when you came in. Then, I introduced her, told her my background, and came to see you. So here I am, and I'll accept any punishment you see fit to dispense, and please note that Caz reacted in defense of me and didn't overreact, and neither did Loki." She hung her head again, then lifted it to look Xobit in the optics. "However, I refuse to accept *all* of the blame, because I know that you are aware that it takes at least two to argue."

Resisting the urge to huff Xobit forced herself to relax a little, there was no question about whom the instigator was, both Caz and Sunblazer were telling the truth, Sunblazer in her usual detailed manner. The question was what to do about it... hum. Shadow? Please contact the commander of one Goldstrike? I wish to see him in my office at soon as possible! looking to the side and catching the optics of her 2IC, Xobit spoke out loud again. "Goldstrike, explain the comment about my crew. The one about being 'attacked' three times..."

Sorry 'Bit, part o' tha's from meh… Loki comm'ed to her Prime quietly, looking down and focusing on the floor for a second. She knew Xobit wouldn't believe Goldstrike's tale of that but still… the dinobot had lost her cool and that just made her feel even worse… Wish's pissed at meh… Loki sat up, shifting against her spot while waiting for the bronze femmes words.

GOLDSTRIKE? Primus, poor Prime... I'm on it, Shadowsinger comm'ed back. Poor Tiyem...

"First, your dinofemme bumped into me. Then she insulted me, I got offended, and she attacked! And then I had just gotten out of your med-bay when I found her... well, it looked like she was forcing herself on that little dancer-mech you've made your CSO, how was I supposed to know different! And of course he attacked me, again, you know that's the second time he's attacked me with no warning? And then this time, well, you already know about this one..." Goldstrike spoke quickly, almost desperate to put the story as she's perceived it... even though she knew that wasn't... really, quite how things had gone.

Sunblazer's optics slid over to watch Goldstrike make a fool of herself, because that is what she was doing, gesturing at her and Loki... her voice had also risen in pitch. Sunblazer made a mental note to find out what had occurred between this bronze femme and her two friends. Well, it sounded like they'd taught her a lesson. She held back a grin, because judging by Xobit's body language and facial expression, she, too, was less than impressed with Goldstrike's explanation.

Caz watched Goldstrike rant and gesture, seeing she was digging herself into an even deeper hole. Blazer had given a much more accurate report of the incident, but she was hanging her head. She was also grateful they had Loki's support here. Xobit looked angry, but confident... boy, was the bronze femme going to get it in the neck when she gave her verdict, lying like that!

"You are coming with unfounded accusations, stating things you know are untrue... My crew consists of specialized troops, they are not ones to stand and take, nor are they ones to attack unprovoked! That you have been 'attacked' three times speak more of your ability to get in trouble than it does of the savageness of my crew... your commander is on the way now." Much as she would like to punish the bronze one herself, Xobit had limited authority outside of the ship, unless the commander of the troops in question was present.

Annoyance at Goldstrike's retelling and the relief that her Prime was annoyed too intermingled, making the dinobot chuckle and growl at the same time. She shifted again, claws flexing as the thought of what Tiyem was going to do entered her processor. Oh, he was going to be PISSED, and more than likely embarrassed as well…

Goldstrike opened her mouth to further defend herself, but before she could say anything the dancer-mech came in, followed by Tiyem. The mech gave a respectful nod to the Prime and went to stand out of the way, while Tiyem frowned at Goldstrike before nodding to the Prime. He was quite nervous, Goldstrike had always manged to avoid major trouble like this before. Tiyem did try to protect his workers, but from what he knew, this was the third time she'd gotten into trouble today... well, he could see that something needed to be done, and was actually glad that someone else was able to do it. "Yes, Prime?"

Sunblazer schooled her faceplates into a neutral expression, although she really wanted to grin broadly when Xobit reamed Goldstrike over not being truthful and making accusations about her crew. She had to try even harder as Shadowsinger walked in, followed by a mech who was a little bigger than Blazer herself, cerulean with a few areas of white. As he nodded politely at Xobit and frowned at Goldstrike, Sunblazer still held her neutral expression, although her inner glee was building. She recalled Xobit telling Goldstrike that her CO was on the way. This was obviously him. Oh boy, was Goldstrike for it now! Then Sunblazer sobered inside as she recalled that there was no guarantee that, due to her own conduct, she was, or would be, absolved of any blame, as he said to Xobit, "Yes, Prime?"

Trying not to grin, Caz stood by Blazer, optics lit in triumph as Xobit reamed Goldstike out for her lies and accusations! And she would be in trouble with her own CO, from what Xobit said this could only be him now, the blue mech coming in with Shadow, and judging by his frown at Goldstrike and his nod at Prime, he was not please and the femme would sure catch it rich from him later! She could see from Blazer's body language that her friend's mood had improved too, with the situation likely to be resolved like this, and Caz's optics danced as they met her crewmates', though her dermaplates stayed schooled in a flat expression and her shoulders stiffened and locked to keep them from shaking with laughter.

"Hello, Commander Tiyem, I regret that we should meet under such... unpleasant circumstances! Unfortunately, you seem to have an individual in your ranks who can not keep to telling the truth..." Gesturing to the bronze femme, Xobit locked her optics with the commander, this was not pleasing in any way. Apparently most of her crew had tangled with the little one and it had not been brought to her attention. "I have been advised that there are at least three incidents now? Could you please tell me how you usually deal with... Goldstrike?" Raking a cold glance over her own crew, letting them know she was displeased, she then cast an even colder one on the bronze one before meeting Tiyem's gaze, waiting for the answers she had requested.

Oh, Tiyem was really not a happy mech. "Her transgressions are usually mild enough that a simple punishment detail is sufficient, Prime. And I do attempt to keep her from those I know or suspect she may have problems with." In practicality, that meant there were about three people on his team that he assigned to work with Goldstrike, and he hoped she chose not to wander around alone on her off-time, which is exactly what she had done this time. "Three incidents like this is a record... I... have no explanation."

Sitting in the background, Loki could barely contain her laughter. Goldstrike was toast, there was NO doubt about that! Xobit Prime was patient, but only to a point, and the bronze femme had definitely pushed her past that point, something that not many did… High-grade after shift? the dinobot asked Shadowsinger through a private comm., letting laughter bubble through it.

Sunblazer wasn't sure how she stopped grinning as Xobit told Goldstrike's commander about Goldstrike's lack of truthfulness, but she sobered a bit as Xobit raked her and Caz with a cold glance, reminding her again that Xobit may not be as mad at them as at Goldstrike, but was nonetheless annoyed at their conduct. She looked on as Commander Tiyem explained his opinion to the Prime, noticed Loki was grinning. As a Dinobot who almost always looked like she was grinning, she could get away with it. Sunblazer looked down again, trying to analyze how else she could have reacted. Having Xobit disappointed in her was almost worse than the humiliation she would have endured if she HAD licked Goldstrike's legs clean.

Caz went calm and quiet, almost depressed on finding out not only that Goldstrike was in trouble with her Commander, but that they were in trouble with their Prime, as she looked at them with a cold glance. She hated upsetting Xobit at all, she wanted to please her, and she hung her head. Loki and Shadow seemed okay, or Loki at least, she could hear the dinobot behind her nearly laughing…Sunblazer was looking down as well and seemed disappointed, and the blue commander of the supply corps looked very grim… Caz wondered what punishment they'd get.

Fighting not to make a sour face at the weak and nervous explanation from Tiyem, Xobit offlined her optics, trying to think rationally.... frag rational! "At times like these I wonder if any of you really are aware of the war! Most of you, at least, should very well be, and yet incidents of infighting always crop up... Caz, Sunblazer... Loki and Shadow', all of you will help Tiyem's people with their duties." Snapping, she looked coldly at each of them until they met her optics and gave a sign that they understood before turning her gaze upon the bronze femme. "Had you been one of mine I would have stripped your rank for the insolence and intolerance you have shown and sent you back to Cybertron with retraining in mind! However, I doubt it will help and you are not one of mine, nor do you have any rank to strip... which does show that your superiors have some sense." Apparently diplomacy had taken a recharge cycle alongside rational, and Xobit briefly turned her icy glare on Tiyem. "I suggest you use the processor you were constructed with, Goldstrike, before you insult someone who will kill you. As for your punishment... lying to a Prime is a bad idea, these incidents will go on your record, with you as the originator. I will recommend retraining, however pointless that will prove to be. I will also strongly recommend that you are never given a higher rank, or work in a place where you perchance for lying can cause damage. Likely you will be transferred within the next joor. Loki, before reporting to Commander Tiyem escort Goldstrike to her cell... and behave befitting you rank this time!"

Gonna be one interesting shift, Shadowsinger agreed to Loki. He nodded contritely at Xobit, it was a far fairer judgment than the last he had gotten from fighting Goldstrike. He should have mentioned his concerns to Prime the moment he saw the bronze femme's name on the roster.

"Your CREW has come the closest to killing me!" Goldstrike burst out, turning to glare at both Loki and Shadowsinger. Her action garnered a sharp hiss from Tiyem before he stepped away from her.

"I won't deny my fault in this matter, Prime. I have been hesitant to transfer her anywhere as long as she did the work, I... well, I didn't want to stress resources any further when it was doubtful it would achieve much, and I thought I had things under control." It was quite clear that plan had been quite thoroughly scrapped, and Tiyem couldn't really feel upset about that.

Sunblazer nodded her understanding as Xobit gave her orders. The red femme just hoped that Tiyem's other crewmembers were not as intolerant as Goldstrike was. She had turned, and was about to ask Tiyem how and where he wanted her to give help, when Goldstrike spoke again, angrily. Sunblazer turned to see Goldstrike gesticulating to Xobit, saying that it was Xobit's crew who had come closest to killing her, and glaring at Loki and Shadow. Sunblazer was unable to hold back the derisive blast of air she blew from her vents. If either Shadow or Loki had WANTED to kill Goldstrike, she would be dead.

Tiyem hissed again at Golodstrike and gave an apology to Xobit and some sort of explanation. Sunblazer almost –almost- felt sorry for Goldstrike, not only was she facing negative remarks and recommendations from a Prime on her record, retraining, dishonorable transfer to who knew what and where, and a spell in the Hyrde's brig, she had just made a disrespectful outburst to Xobit. She huffed again, and wondered if this femme possess any logic circuits AT ALL? Turning to Tiyem, Sunblazer nodded respectfully to him. "Recon specialist Sunblazer presenting for duty, Commander Tiyem," she said respectfully.

Caz watched as Goldstrike made a last outburst to the Prime, resulting in a warning hiss from her commanding officer. Eh, it was worth a deal of shifting boxes and such to know that one was going to a cell. She followed Blazer's lead and turned respectfully to Tiyem, "Recon specialist Caz reporting for duty, Sir!" she said looking at him.

"Aye, Prime," Loki said, standing and resisting the urge to ask Xobit if she'd EVER behaved like she should. The dinobot really didn't… but then, her Prime knew that, and it made Loki wince slightly. She'd behave… but only because her friend ordered it. Walking to the door, she bowed her head at Tiyem and the others with a small sigh before looking at Goldstrike expectantly. "Les' go an' get this over with."

"If they wanted to kill you, you would be dead." Clipped, simple and the utter truth. Every one of her crew was a trained killer, oh, they had other merits, in some cases many other merits, but the fact was that they were warriors, trained to kill, and seasoned warriors too, tried in the only way that mattered on the battle field. "Commander Tiyem, it is admirable to try and help a crewmember who struggles with something, but this…" Xobit stopped in an effort to find appropriate words, and incidentally try to reign in her temper. "If you get another recruit like this one, do yourself, and others, a favor and don't hesitate! I will look into her personnel file and see if there are incidences that might need another interpretation in light of this one…" More work, but it needed to be done, and Tiyem… well, better she did it, just to make sure it was done right. "Dismissed… and make sure I don't hear anything bad about any of you for the next four joors!" For just a second her disappointment in them shone through her anger alongside her tiredness. It had been far too long since her last full recharge cycle…

Bowing his head, Tiyem acquiesced to the Prime's words, and she was right, he knew. "Yes, Prime." There was no more to say, nothing more to do... well, except to give orders to those who had temporarily been put under him. "Ah, c'mon then, I'll show you lot what to do. It's not that hard, really..." Explaining, he lead the three out to work while the dinobot took Goldstrike away.

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